Road Scholar Program

Road Scholar is a not-for-profit organization founded in 1975 to provide lifelong learning opportunities for adults. Known as a “University of the World,” Road Scholar creates programs that combine travel and education to provide experiential learning opportunities both nationally and internationally. Since 2002, we have been inviting Road Scholars to attend the Dickens Universe, an immersive, weeklong conference held at UC Santa Cruz, where people of various backgrounds come together to collaborate and discuss the chosen Victorian novel of that year.

Our program differs from most Road Scholar opportunities in that Road Scholar participants are fully integrated with fellow participants. Road Scholars will expand not only their education, but also their social circles, as they dance, dine, and take field trips alongside scholars, undergraduates, and members of the general public. Inspiring instructors, spirited conversations, new friends, and new experiences Road Scholars are able to encompass the best of the university experience at UC Santa Cruz, through the Dickens Universe Conference.